Heloisa dos Santos Silva, 3, died after being hospitalized for nine days in serious condition. The information was confirmed by the City of Duque de Caxias (RJ), which reported that the child died after an irreversible cardiorespiratory arrest.
The girl was shot in the back of the head and shoulder during an action by the Federal Highway Police (PRF) in Arco Metropolitano, in Baixada Fluminense.
The child was in the intensive care unit of the Adão Pereira Nunes Municipal Hospital, in Duque de Caxias, where she was taken after being injured.
When she was shot, she was with her family heading home, to Petrópolis, in the mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro.
According to reports from relatives and witnesses, a Federal Highway Police vehicle began following the car in which the girl was traveling. The agents opened fire after the child's father, William Silva, signaled to stop.
In the car, in addition to Heloisa, were her parents, an eight-year-old sister, and an aunt. The case is currently being investigated by the Federal Prosecution Service, the Federal Police, and the PRF's general internal affairs department.
Translated by Cassy Dias